Warm Up Bike Ride

I can't believe ski season ended some quickly.  Well, no time to rest, though.  Time to get ready for the next season. 

Last year, I got a new book from Rails-to-Trails detailing the many bike trails in Southern New England.  There was a rail trail running along Rt 140 in Gardner that I did several years ago, but at that time it was only about 3 miles long.  Since then, however, they were able to link it with another trail that goes all the way to the "Y" in the center of Winchendon.  Altogether, this trail is known as the North Central Pathway.

The ride was on paved rail trail for all but 3/4 of a mile, were it jumped onto Old Gardner Road then Rt 12 for 200 meters.  Even so, getting across busy Rt 12 was pretty easy.

I covered the entire 14.06 miles in about 1:05.  The weather was very mild for early April.  The only extra layer I needed was my biking jacket.

The bike trail ends at the Clark Memorial YMCA in Winchendon.  It's a nice stop with ample parking and even playground for the kids.